AZ Congressional Delegation

Left behind by Congress until January 19

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You may have noticed that we did not have a government shutdown for Christmas because Tea-Publicans in Congress agreed to a “clean” Continuing Resolution” (CR) to continue funding programs at current levels until January 19, when the real fight will take place.

Congress kicked the can down the road on a number of controversial issues that Congress had said it wanted to resolve before the end of the year. Who gets left behind in the spending bill:

Keeping the government funded was nearly an afterthought after Republicans celebrated passage of their historic tax bill and ditched town for the holiday season.

But in the rush to close out a year of turmoil in Washington, Congress left disaster aid, Dreamers and pensioners on the back burner, and gave only a temporary reprieve to children’s health insurance and spying powers. Even though lawmakers stripped out most additions to the spending bill, GOP leaders scrambled for days to clear it.

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Mama Grizzly

With Massive Tax Cuts from Feds, Big Corps Don’t Need AZ Tax Giveaways (video)

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Mama GrizzlyVice presidential candidate Sarah Palin called herself a “Mama Grizzly” because she said she would fight like a Mama Grizzly to protect her children.

Although “Mama Grizzly” was a catchy marketing slogan for the folksy rural mayor from Alaska, the Republican Party has never embraced the idea of protecting children after birth or helping families. Unfortunately, this week Congressional Republicans took their disregard for middle class families one step further by voting for billions of dollars in tax cuts for big corporations and for the richest Americans– while saddling our children and grandchildren with massive debt to pay the bills in the future.

Hmmm… let’s see… what to do… pass legislation that would actually help millions of Americans– like equitably funding public education across the country or fixing the Affordable Care Act (to make it affordable) — OR cut taxes for your rich donors? Cut taxes, of course! With party-line votes to pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Congressional Republicans have shown that they are far more interested in enriching the billionaire class than in improving the lives of everyday Americans. Universal healthcare? Food Security? World-class public education? Safe roads and bridges? Financial stability for the middle class? Meh. Congressional Republicans don’t care about pursuing the People’s To-Do List.

Although the majority of Americans see the tax cut bill as unfair, Republicans are on course to deliver the biggest Christmas present… ever… to the 0.01%.

In my opinion, the passage of this massive wealth transfer bill underscores the need for a few new progressive action items…

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Suffer the children: GOP campaign donors get their tax cut, no help for poor children on CHIP

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The New York Times reports, With Children’s Health Program Running Dry, Parents Beg Congress: ‘Do the Right Thing’ (as reported in the previous post, Tea-Publicans will laugh at your begging for your children’s lives):

With more and more states running out of money for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, parents took their case to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, pleading with Congress to provide money before their sons and daughters lose health care and coverage.

But the program, known as CHIP, which insures nearly nine million children, took a back seat as lawmakers raced to pass a $1.5 trillion tax cut. CHIP’s fate, it appears, is now caught up in a messy fight over an end-of-the-year deal on spending that must be struck by Friday to avert a government shutdown.

“CHIP is being used as a pawn in larger debates and negotiations,” Linda Nablo, the chief deputy director of the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services, said Tuesday in an interview. “It has fallen victim to the dysfunction and partisanship in Congress. And we are getting very close to the point where some children will also be victims.”

Congress has known since April 2015 that funds for the popular children’s insurance program — created and sustained for two decades with bipartisan support — would expire this year at the end of September. The Senate Finance Committee approved a five-year extension of funding for the program in early October, but did not specify how to pay for it — and Republicans insist that it must be paid for (unlike tax cuts for corporations and wealthy plutocrats which is being financed by debt).

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Senate passes GOP tax bill, back to the House for final action of betrayal

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In the end, there was not a single Tea-Publican in the Senate to display courage and conviction of principles to vote against this abomination of a GOP tax bill finaced by $1.5 trillion in debt that future generations will pay. They all failed their “Profiles in Courage” moment.

The GOP’s plutocrat campaign donors and corporate masters demanded a tax cut they did not need and these lickspittle servants of the oligarchy kissed their feet and said  “yes master, your wish is my command.”

In the wee hours of Wednesday morning when decent people were asleep, the Republican Tax Bill Passed the Senate in a 51-48 Vote:

Republicans took a critical step toward notching their first significant legislative victory since assuming full political control, as the House and Senate voted along party lines on Tuesday and into early Wednesday to pass the most sweeping rewrite of the tax code in decades.

The $1.5 trillion tax bill, which is expected to head to President Trump’s desk in the coming days, will have broad effects on the economy, making deep and lasting cuts to corporate taxes as well as temporarily lowering individual taxes.

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House passes GOP tax bill on a party-line vote, moves to the Senate

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House Speaker Paul Ryan, “the zombie-eyed granny starver from the state of Wisconsin,” was so overjoyed with achieving his boyhood dream of sticking it to the working class, the elderly, the disabled, and the poor — the “takers” as his running mate Mitt Romney once referred to them — that he was practically giddy.

That someone takes such pleasure in causing millions of Americans to suffer is pure evil.

The House has passed the abomination of the GOP tax bill on a party-line vote of 2227-203, with only a dozen Tea-Publicans voting no. House passes final tax bill, edging GOP closer to win:

Arizona Congressional Delegation: YEAHS: Biggs, Gosar, McSally, Schweikert; NAYS: Gallego, Grijalva, O’Halleran, Sinema. Not Voting: Franks (seat vacant).

The Senate is expected to pass the bill later on Tuesday, sending it to President Trump’s desk and allowing the GOP to achieve its goal of rewriting the tax code in Trump’s first year in office.

Multiple protesters interrupted House floor debate on the tax bill Tuesday, including people who shouted “kill the bill, don’t kill us!” as well as a woman in a wheelchair who said she relies on Medicaid and warned that the bill would “starve” the public.

One protester even interrupted Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) as he delivered a floor speech that he’s wanted to give for decades in support of the tax overhaul.

“Today we are giving the [wealthy] people of this country their money back. This is their money, after all,” Ryan said.

A woman in the public visitors’ gallery then shouted, “You’re lying!”

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